meet cute in manhattan
New York City and romantic comedies have a long and storied history. Karen Morey’s Meet Cute in Manhattan tries to trade on that reputation by trying to both stage a tribute to and deconstruct the rom-com. While it doesn’t live up to the potential of the premise or stand out from the shadow of its predecessors, the best moments are found in the lead’s professional struggle rather than his romantic one.
Jason (star and co-writer Terence Chen) is a struggling actor who was dumped by his influencer girlfriend just before they were set to attend a commercial audition looking for couples. He stumbles into a classic meet-cute when he collides with Nora (Kendall Leary), aspiring architect and current barista, and spills his coffee. To repay Jason for his ruined shirt, Nora agrees to attend the audition. Their chemistry and rough attempts at improv charm the director and get them the parts. Suddenly, the pair are the stars of a viral marketing campaign for a new dating app, Meet Cute, as the ads have them reenacting scenes from classic love scenes from films. Their manufactured love is everywhere, irritating Jason’s on-again girlfriend Chloe (Amanda Shi) and Nora’s finance bro boyfriend Kip (Martin K. Lewis). As their bond grows, they find themselves living out the plot of their own romantic comedy, despite the forces working against them.
Threaded through the traditional romance plot is a meta structure, as Jason is meeting with productive executives trying to pitch them the movie that we’re in the middle of watching. The executives serve as an out-of-touch Greek chorus, allowing them to comment on the movie and the entire genre. This self-referential style also allows Chen an outlet to express his issues with being stuck and typecast as an Asian actor. Jason dreams of Shakespeare, nuanced storytelling, and art that has impact, but his career consists of steady but unfulfilling commercial work and auditions filled with stereotypes and microaggressions. He wants to be the star of a romance, a genre his parents taught him to love, but the opportunities don’t exist for him. It’s here where the film shines, the script showing care, humor, and empathy for Jason’s issues, his artistic pursuits weighed down by reality and practicality. It’s incisive, funny, and makes it easy to root for Jason on every level. The production design is also a highlight, from the cloying matching pinks of Chloe’s apartment to the detailed homage work in the Meet Cute ad campaigns. The supporting cast members are strong, particularly Jason’s family, and provide nice moments of comic relief.
The film seems to struggle more in its handling of the romance. While Chen and Leary are both sweet on camera, they lack the chemistry needed to earn investment, and the story repeatedly sets them up for unfavorable comparisons. The ad campaign that launches Nora and Jason to notoriety consists of them recreating famous rom-com moments. They’re Harry and Sally, they’re singin’ in the rain, they’re riding on a Vespa as they share a Roman holiday. We’re watching them imitate some of the most famous romantic movie pairings in modern history, and in doing so they mostly display the ways in which they don’t measure up. These montage moments are meant to sell the idea that Nora and Jason are falling in love, but they become more about the reference than the characters themselves. In an effort to pay proper tribute to the genre, the script skims past some of the foundational steps to get to big declarative moments, so moments feel unearned.
Meet Cute in Manhattan is a love letter to romantic comedies that is hindered by its devotion to the genre. There are moments of humor and charm, but the love story pales in comparison to a hopeful tale about finding and embracing your creative spark.
